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Albert Icks

Henry Irving
Henry Irving Posts: 85,255
in General Charlton
Thanks to a lead given to us by @kentred2 the museum have been researching another of our pre football league heroes.

Born on this day in 1898 Albert Icks was from Belgium.

He was a refugee from the 1914 invasion of his country by Germany and like thousands of his countrymen, Albert was housed in Abbey Wood which was called "Little Brussels" as a result. The area retains many reminders of this immigration to this day.

Icks was a goalkeeper and soon found a place in the Charlton side that had already seen many players leave for the Army, the Navy or long hours in munitions factories.

Fans loved his flamboyant goalkeeping style, dribbling the ball out of defence for example and his presence put 100s in the gate as locals and fellow refugees came to see him play. In the 1930s Sam Bartram was initially called "the new Icks"

But the committee, no manager then, resented his "fancy foreign ways" and demands for mayonnaise on his haddock and chips and dropped him.

This caused fan protests and chants of "Add Icks, Add Icks" which lead to our unique nickname.

We continue to research Albert's time after Charlton of which little is known.

Happy birthday Bert


Comments

  • DaveMehmet
    DaveMehmet Posts: 21,614
    Looks like a young @SE7toSG3 to me.
  • Lordflashheart
    Lordflashheart Posts: 5,623
    April 1st
  • BartramBlitz
    BartramBlitz Posts: 675
    Nice one Ben
  • Blackheathen
    Blackheathen Posts: 6,658
    A derivation of Addicks which I haven’t heard before (happy to be taken in) 😀
  • blackpool72
    blackpool72 Posts: 23,701
    Had me fooled for a minute. 
    Very good.
  • Henry Irving
    Henry Irving Posts: 85,255
    DaveMehmet said:
    Looks like a young @SE7toSG3 to me.
    Maybe Albert was sowing his wild oats.

    And @SE7toSG3 does spend a lot of time in Belgium
  • Henry Irving
    Henry Irving Posts: 85,255

  • thai malaysia addick
    thai malaysia addick Posts: 18,358
    I am sure that my father told me he was known as "Icks between the sticks". After his untimely death, he was known as "the ghost between the posts". The ghost would regularly appear at the Covered End during games until it ceased to appear after 21 December 1957. Curiously, this was the date of the game 200,000 people attended between Charlton and Huddersfield Town which ended 7-6. Many believed there was some connection. The ghost has only appeared once since that date at The Covered End. This was as Nicky Bailey was running up to take a penalty in a play-off semi final.
  • Addick Addict
    Addick Addict Posts: 39,850
    thai malaysia addick said:
    I am sure that my father told me he was known as "Icks between the sticks". After his untimely death, he was known as "the ghost between the posts". The ghost would regularly appear at the Covered End during games until it ceased to appear after 21 December 1957. Curiously, this was the date of the game 200,000 people attended between Charlton and Huddersfield Town which ended 7-6. Many believed there was some connection. The ghost has only appeared once since that date at The Covered End. This was as Nicky Bailey was running up to take a penalty in a play-off semi final.
    That's "Sick"!
  • SantaClaus
    SantaClaus Posts: 7,668
    You spun that one very well sir. 

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  • kentred2
    kentred2 Posts: 2,341
    Glad to see Icks is finally getting his recognition!!  I wrote a letter about him to the votv many years ago which they printed. 
  • soapy_jones
    soapy_jones Posts: 21,370
    edited April 2021
    Roland Dutchelets illegitimate love child as well,  not a lot of people know that!
  • Dave Rudd
    Dave Rudd Posts: 2,867
    There's something not quite right here.

    Isn't the Belgian spelling 'Ickx'?
  • Henry Irving
    Henry Irving Posts: 85,255

  • Algarveaddick
    Algarveaddick Posts: 21,162
    Dave Rudd said:
    There's something not quite right here.

    Isn't the Belgian spelling 'Ickx'?
    He spoke very little Englished when he arrived, so the immigration official just spelled it as he heard it. Albert just stuck with it as he found explaining the spelling all the time a bit tiresome.     
  • Dave Rudd
    Dave Rudd Posts: 2,867
    Algarveaddick said:
    Dave Rudd said:
    There's something not quite right here.

    Isn't the Belgian spelling 'Ickx'?
    He spoke very little Englished when he arrived, so the immigration official just spelled it as he heard it. Albert just stuck with it as he found explaining the spelling all the time a bit tiresome.     
    Ah, yes.  Fair enough.

    I can't believe that I didn't think of that.

    I think the same applied to Albert Uytenbogaardt in the 1940s.  His real name was actually 'Smith', of course.

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